Google disables iPhone app that studied users' digital habits

Google and Facebook had faced criticism from privacy experts for distributing their research apps through a programme iPhone maker Apple had created for companies to distribute apps to employees.

Agencies

January 31, 2019, 10:45 IST

Alphabet's Google said on Wednesday it disabled an iPhone app that it had paid some users to install to study their digital habits, following a similar move late on Tuesday by social media network Facebook.

Google and Facebook had faced criticism from privacy experts for distributing their research apps through a programme iPhone maker Apple had created for companies to distribute apps to employees.

"The Screenwise Meter iOS app should not have operated under Apple's developer enterprise programme - this was a mistake, and we apologise," Google said in a statement. Apple did not immediately respond to a request to comment.

Google said it had always been "upfront with users" about how it used data collected by the app, which offered users points that could be accrued for gift cards. Google said its Screenwise Meter app never asked users to let the company circumvent network encryption, thereby indicating that it is far less intrusive than Facebook's Research app.

Yesterday, Apple had banned Facebook from the program saying that social networking company had improperly used it to track the web-browsing habits of teenagers. The program lets businesses control iPhones used by their employees.

This ban restricts Facebook's ability to test its internal apps - including core apps such as Facebook and Instagram - before they are released through the app store, although the company is still permitted to distribute apps through Apple's app store, since such apps are reviewed by Apple ahead of time.